1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a cell or particle analyzing device and, more particularly, to a cell or particle analyzing device that analyzes cells or particles using an optical equipment.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional cell analyzing device 8 is disclosed. When operating the cell analyzing device 8, a plurality of cells 80 to be analyzed is dyed with fluorescent dyes and disposed into a sample tube thereafter. The cells 80 are pushed by air pressure into a flowing chamber completely filled with sheath fluid. The cells 80 are aligned with each other under the reaction of the sheath fluid and ejected downwards from the flowing chamber via a nozzle 81, forming a cell column in a cell channel 811. The cell column is perpendicular to an incident laser beam 82, and the cells 80 of the cell column are orderly energized by the laser beam 82 to generate a forward scattering light 83, a side scattering light 84 and a fluorescent light 85. The forward scattering light 83 is received by a first sensor 86, the side scattering light 84 is received by a second sensor 87, and the fluorescent light 85 is received by a third sensor 88. In such an arrangement, information associated with size, shape and biological characteristics of the cells 80 can be determined using a processing unit provided to analyze the lights 83, 84 and 85 received by the sensors 86, 87 and 88.
However, the conventional cell analyzing device 8 still has some drawbacks below.
First, the cell analyzing device 8 has a high cost. Because the first sensor 86, the second sensor 87 and the third sensor 88 used to receive the forward scattering light 83, the side scattering light 84 and the fluorescent light 85 are very expensive, the cell analyzing device 8 has a high cost and regular users cannot afford it. It is also costly to maintain the sensors 86, 87 and 88.
Second, the cell analyzing device 8 cannot cultivate cells. Since the cells 80 should be cultivated in a culture medium or culture dish, the cells 80 cannot be cultivated because the cell analyzing device 8 causes the cells 80 to escape from an environment where they can be well cultivated.
FIGS. 3, 4a and 4b show another conventional cell analyzing device 9 including a culture dish 91 and a resistance detector 92 for counting the number of the cultivated cells. The culture dish 91 allows cells 90 to be cultivated thereon while dynamically adjusting the resistance thereof according to immediate physiological and pathological changes of the cells 90. The resistance detector 92 is electrically connected to the culture dish 91 to detect the resistance of the culture dish 91. Therefore, the quantity and related information of the cells 90 can be determined according to the change of resistance.
Although the cell analyzing device 9 can achieve both purposes of cell culture and cell analyzing via provision of the culture dish 91, the cell analyzing device 9 still has some drawbacks below.
First, the cell analyzing device 9 has a high cost. The culture dish 91 has a very high price since it is capable of adjusting the resistance thereof according to immediate physiological and pathological conditions of the cells 90.
Second, the cell analyzing device 9 cannot analyze the cells 90 in an accurate way. Since the cell analyzing device 9 relies on resistance change of the culture dish 91 to analyze the cells 90, the cells 90 should contact the culture dish 91 with as larger area as possible to allow the resistance detector 92 to accurately detect the resistance of the culture dish 91, as shown in FIG. 4a. However, the cells 90 may not have large contact area with the culture dish 91 as shown in FIG. 4b, leading to an inaccurate resistance detection of the culture dish 91. Briefly speaking, the detection accuracy of the cell analyzing device 9 cannot be assured relying on the resistance change of the culture dish 91.
In summary, since both conventional cell analyzing devices 8 and 9 have disadvantages such as high cost, inability to cultivate cells, low detection accuracy, etc, a need exists to improve the conventional cell analyzing devices 8 and 9.